There was a thread a few months ago about the sanctity of the Medal of Honor. Below is an example of how it was used in way that would be unrecognizable in today's world. And if anyone deserved a medal, it was James W. Jackson who as a civilian, defended his country's flag and his property against a platoon of armed thugs.

Col. Elmer E. Ellsworth was a protege of Abe Lincoln back in Springfield, IL.

Ellsworth died shortly after arriving in Washington. On May 24, 1861, the day after Virginia seceded, President Lincoln observed from the White House a large Confederate flag prominently displayed in the neighboring town of Alexandria Virginia. Offering to retrieve the flag for Lincoln, Ellsworth led his men uncontested down the streets of Alexandria, Virginia, across the Potomac River from Washington. He ordered some of his men to take the railroad station, while he and a few other soldiers went to secure the telegraph office and the Confederate flag flying above the Marshall House Inn. He and four others quickly went up the stairs. Ellsworth cut down the flag and was on the way down the stairs, when the owner, James W. Jackson, killed him with a shotgun blast to the chest. Cpl. Francis Brownell, of Troy, New York, immediately killed the innkeeper. Brownell was later awarded a Medal of Honor for his actions.